Trust: Your Family
by X-Midnight-Lady-X
Summary: Lovino and Feliciano were orphaned when they witnessed their parents murder on a cruise. Now, a year later, certain events begin to happen to them, and secrets about their family emerge. But really, who can they trust? Secret Agent, sort of Mafia AU
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I don't own any APH characters, and for this story, I don't own Alejandro either.**

**Warnings:  
>Swearing<strong>**, blood, OC's (won't be major), Character Death (OC Deaths really), suicide (Again...OC's), possible OOC-ness but I try not to! AU**

**Full Summary: Lovino and Feliciano were orphaned when they witnessed their parents murder on a cruise. Now, a year later, certain events begin to happen to them, and dark secrets about their family emerge. But really, who can they trust?**

**A/N: Damn, I really can't write summaries can I? Hopefully, my story will make up for it! For now, this has no pairings, and is mainly based on Italy and Romano, bromance I guess, but not Itacest. Okay, this AU is sort of Mafia, and hopefully, you'll get it next chapter because it'll be explained there instead!**

**Enjoy! :)**

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><p><span>Prologue<span>

"... And remember to be polite!"

Lovino scowled as his mother reached over to fix his crimson tie. He could do it himself, damnit! Sometimes he wished his parents would just leave him alone.

"Ve~! Fratello looks nice!" Feliciano commented from the side, waiting for their mother, Rosa, to finish brushing up Lovino. He was dressed in a white dress shirt, with a matching white suit and a baby blue tie.

The only response that Lovino gave was a dark glare. Like his younger brother, he too was wearing a white dress shirt. However, he was clad in a ebony tuxedo and crimson tie. Honestly, he'd much rather he had his straight leg dark jeans and his leather jacker. The fifteen year old, was not amused.

"Lovino, you know this is a formal ball. Besides, there will be a lot of pretty girls there and you want to make a good impression!" Rosa lectured, "these girls are all very respectable and come from high families! And you are both very handsome boys!"

A deep chuckle came from the doorway of their bedroom.

All three occupents of the room glanced at the intruder.

Claudio Vargas, stood in a dark suit, with his arms crossed, chocolate eyes glowing mischievously. Feliciano would have been the spitting image of him, excluding the hair. Whilst both Lovino and Feliciano both had more tame hair, which at times was slightly curly like their mother's (and their strange hair curls which stuck out), Claudio had messy auburn hair. Lovino seemed to take after their mother more, both of them having darker hair and hazel eyes...not to mention the temper at times, but Rosa had learnt to control hers after a while.

"Ah, how handsome you boys look! Well, you are my sons after all!" Clauduo exclaimed as he strode ove to his two teenage sons.

"Thank God they didn't inherit your ego." Rosa muttered, straightening herself up and patting down her dress.

"You look beautiful, my dear."

Rosa blushed deeply as Feliciano giggled. Lovino scowled at the public displays of affection that their parents were showing. Sure, they were Italian, and Italians were the best lovers, but did they really have to do it in front of their kids?

Claudio brushed a piece of stray hair off of Rosa's face. She swatted his hand gently away and smiled towards him before turning back to the boys. She was wearing a royal purple, strapless dress with elaborate golden patterns which danced across the waistline. Checking over herself and her family once more before clapping her hands together.

"Right! All ready? Let's go!" Rosa grabbed Feliciano's hand and gently lead him out of the bedroom. "We don't want the boys to be late for their Young Persons Ball. There are two girls, Monika and Stella who we would like you to meet!"

Lovino scowled at the thought of their parents setting them up on blind dates. At least they would be pretty right?

"_Cara_, would you mind taking Feliciano first? I need to talk to Lovino...in private."

Chocolate eyes shifted instantly to his older son, who stiffened. Great. What had he done now?

Rosa raised an eyebrow, but remained silent. She nodded and ushered Feliciano out of the room, as the young Italian made little "Ve~" noises, excited to meet some girls.

Once they were out of the room, Claudio went over to sit on the bed, patting the space next to him, indicating he wanted Lovino to sit next to him. Keeping the frown upon his face, Lovino plopped down on the bed. Claudio took a deep breath before starting.

"I know I'm a couple of days late, and I haven't even given Feliciano his present yet," Lovino seemed to perk up at this revalation, but waited silently for his father to continue, "but I felt like you should have it tonight." He explained.

Claudio reached into his pocket and pulled out a small jewellery box. Lovino scowled, thinking about how feminine it looked. He was a man, damnit! His father noted this reaction and smiled softly. He handed over the small velvet box and pressed it into Lovino's hand.

Cautiously, Lovino traced the lining of the box before lifting it up slowly. He resisted the gasp which threatened to escape as he regarded the object within.

A photo locket.

However, it was not an ordinary one which could be bought at any random store. No. This was custom-made. How could he tell?

The Vargas family was rich for two main reasons. One, their family had a history of dealing with international relations, which was the reason they were on this cruise ship anyway. Two, the Vargas diamonds. They were not the normal colourless diamonds that glisten in the light which everyone craved to have. No. These diamonds could be in any colour and were cut by the most talented hands. At the top of the silver rectangular locket, sat a single sparkling diamond of green.

Lovino's favourite colour.

Clicking it open, he realised that his father had already placed two photos within the locket. On the left, was a picture of their parents, smiling brightly up at him whilst on the right, it was him and his brother. The picture had been taken, perhaps a year ago during their summer holiday in Spain. Lovino wore a small smile whilst Feliciano had one arm hanging around his shoulder, a bright grin upon his face. He smiled at the memory.

Moreover, when Lovino lifted the locket closer to his face, he realised that there was something engraved in an elegant script. One word on each side which made a statement.

_Vargas Famiglia._

"Happy Belated Birthday, Lovino" Claudio smiled. Lovino seemed to snap back into reality as he blinked whilst his cheeks rapidly turned red.

"G-grazie papa." Claudio chuckled.

"Well, I'm glad you like it. Turn around and I'll help put it on you."

Lovino complied and let his father place the locket around his neck.

Perhaps tonight wouldn't he so bad after all.

* * *

><p>"...And father also wants me to marry a rich man with good judgement. He wants me to carry on with our business of course, but he would also like to have descendents to pass down our name."<p>

Hell.

That was the only way that Lovino could describe wht this experience was like. He supported himself with his head on his arm as he nodded at various different timings.

The young girl sitting across the table from him, was rambling about her life, occasionally flicking her curly chocolate hair behind her. What was her name...Monika? Or was this Stella? It didn't matter. She bored him and her voice was irritating anyway.

His hazel eyes quickly flickered towards the side to glance at what his brother was doing.

Snorting quietly, he spied that Feliciano seemed to be having a good time as he rambled on about something to the blonde opposite. It was probably pasta.

"Hey! Are you even listening to me?" Monika snapped her fingers in front of Lovino's face.

"C-cosa? O-oh! Si!" He realised that the four of them had now finished their meal and that the orchestra was starting to play a waltz.

Lovino tapped his brother lightly on the shoulder and whispered something in his ear. Both Monika and Stella wore confused looks upon their faces. The two boys got up and walked round the table, holding out a hand in offer.

"Would you care to dance?" They asked simultaneously.

Both girls blinked in surprise but got up anyway. One by one, other couples started to make their way to the dance floor as soon as they saw the two Italians lead. Within a couple od minutes, the ballroom was filled with people dancing and twirling happily to the delightful music.

"Lovino, I'm thirsty. Get me a drink." Monika demanded, adding a shrill giggle at the end. "Get one for Stella as well will you dear?"

Lovino resisted the urge to gag as he heard her sickly sweet voice. Damnit, she was only average looking! His brother always got the better girls too as Stella actually looked charming.

However, he nodded, leaving Monika at their dining table so that he would be able to grab them some drinks as the orchestra began to end their piece.

Lovino poured two drinks as he observed the grand ball room. The orchestra, all clad in a matching black uniform were on the stage coming to the end of the song. The chaperone Ms. Ammirati was a short lady with auburn hair, quite round and had a voice that sounded like cats screeching whilst scratching their claws on a chalkboard. The blur of colours as people danced their final steps. As the music came to an end, the unexpected happened.

An explosion sounded.

Panic erupted throughout the ballroom of the private ship, as the girls screamed desprately, hiding behind the boys. Annoyingly enough, Lovino found that Monika had somehow found her way to him, and was now clinging onto his arm, tears running down her face.

Ms. Ammirati clambered on the stage and snatched up the microphone.

"Young Ladies and Gentlemen. Please remain calm and go back to your rooms with your parents. Please do not panic and remain calm. You shall be escorted by the ushers at the doors. I hope you have had a good night, and please do not worry."

After her speech, she ran off in the direction of the explosion; the same direction as the Vargas' room.

Instantly, people began to rush back towards their rooms. Thinking quickly, Lovino shook Monika off himself and ran to find his brother.

"Ve~! Fratello, I'm scared!" Feliciano wimpered. Lovino squeezed his brother's hand in an attempt to comfort him.

"Come on, we need to get back." Lovino encouraged as they ran in the same way as Ms. Ammiratihad moments ago, their hearts beating in fear.

A few shots rang out throughout the corridor that they were heading towards, but Lovino would not allow that to stop him. He had to get Feliciano safe.

A sharp gasp that escaped caught Lovino's attention, causing him to skid to a hault. Hazel eyes turned to his brother, wondering what had caused him to stop.

"Fr-fratello! Look!"

"What is it, Fel-"

Lovino stopped his sentence as he spied what had spooked his brother.

Lying to the side of the corridor was Ms. Ammirati, with a single gunshot through her head. The blood was still fresh and trickled down her face, eyes glassy and dull. The look of pure fear was still ectched upon her face. He shuddered at the sight.

A scream.

A shot.

The piercing sound brought Lovino back to reality. If this had happened, then what would have happened to their parents? He really didn't want to think about it.

Grabbing Feliciano's wrist, the two boys sprinted towards their room, slamming their door open. They were met with the sight of a sandy haired man, who had their father pinned against the wall, one hand round his neck, the other gripping a pistol. Claudio had a trails of blood trickling down from his forehead and the edge of his mouth.

"Mama!"

Feliciano began running towards where Rosa lay at the feet of the mystery man, lifeless as a plethora of blood began to form around her.

The man scowled as Feliciano approached, grabbing and lifting him in the air and throwing him against a wall, effectively knocking him unconscious.

"Tch. What a brat." He muttered. Lovino glared at the man. He wanted to run, but he couldn't just leave his family like that! But he was frozen, unable to do anything.

Useless.

"L-let me go, Alejandro." Claudio choked out, attempting to pry the fingers off of his neck. "I know you don't want to!" Alejandro visibly hesitated, but kepy his grip.

"I-I have to do this! It's my final assignment!" The sandy-haired man stuttered through his tears. "T-they'll kill my son! Like they did to my..." his sentence was cut off as Claudio kicked him away before withdrawing a pistol.

The man, Alejandro, sprang up from the ground and grabbed Lovino into a headlock. Lovino's eyes widened and he wimpered when he felt the cool metal of the gun press against his forehead. Tears prickled at his eyes as he saw the panic on his father's face. What if he wasn't able to get to him in time?

Growling, Alejandro only tightened his grip on Lovino and raised the hand with the pistol. Lovino struggled against the grip, wriggling around; he had to get out!

"Stay away from imy/i son!" Claudio exclaimed, ready to shoot. Lovino stared as he watched his father run towards them; he was desperate to at least save his son. Alejandro's eyes narrowed as he twisted his wrist so that the gun was now pointing at Claudio.

"Lo siento, mi amigo." Alejandro whispered through his tears...

...and pulled the trigger.

"PAPA!"

As if in slow-motion, the bullet sliced through the air, going in silver and out the back of the skull covered in a disgusting burgandy blood. Claudio's chocolate eyes had tears in them as he stared straight at Lovino with his lifeless orbs.

Lovino wanted to scream. He wanted to hit the man who had just murdered his parents. He wanted to kill him.

"They're...coming for me now."

Alejandro whispered to himself, no longer holding the child in his grip, giving Lovino a chance to free himself. The instant he did, he scrambled over to his father's body. Tears flowed down his cheeks as he reached up to grip the locket. Snapping his head up, he saw the sandy hair man stare at him with deep emerald eyes. He even had the nerve to smile at him! That bastard!

But...why was he pointing the gun at himself? Realization hit Romano and he was about to scream again, when Alejandro held up a hand to silence him.

"Run."

And shot himself.

* * *

><p>Lovino looked down, replaying the memory hundreds of times in his head. It had only been about a week ago, and it gave him constant nightmares; the man with the crazy green eyes haunted him. He had killed his parents.<p>

The thought of it still hadn't fully sunk into his head.

Now, Lovino stood side by side with his brother in an orphanage. Although they had only been there for a couple of days, they were already being adopted by a couple of Dutch siblings. Ordinarily, they would have gone into their Grandfather's care, however, no one had been able to trace him down for quite a few years now. The last time that he had seen him, was when Feliciano had been about six.

"This is Bella and Lars Van der Meer. They've decided they want to adopt you." The young woman who ran the orphanage smiled. In front of the Italian brothers, stood a young girl with short blond hair, held up by a simple red ribbon and a stern looking man with hair that defied gravity.

"Aw! How cute!" Bella cooed towards Lovino, bending down slightly to pat his head, causing the young Italian to blush. His brother giggled. "Lars, look how cute this one is!"

"Ch-chigi!"

"Ah~! Aren't they sweet?" Bella continued to fawn over the shorter boy and pulled both younger boys into a hug as her older brother looked slightly awkward

"B-bella, he's not a puppy..." Lars stated, trying to pry his sister off of the young boys.

"I'm Bella, and this is my big brother Lars! I'm eighteen and he's twenty-two! We're going to be like your big brother and sister!"

"Introduce yourselves boys." The woman urged.

"Ciao~. My name is Feliciano Vargas! And this is my big brother L-"

"Romano."

Lovino cut him off. Feliciano shot Lovino a sideways look of shock, which was only returned with a glare that silenced him. This was a chance to start a new life. He would no longer be the little useless boy he was before. He would get his revenge. He would start a new life from now.

As Romano.

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><p><strong>Cara - Dear<strong>

**First of all, YAY! I did it XD  
>Second, I'd like to apologise to anyone who is called MonikaMonica or Stella! I really hope I didn't offend you! :( **

**Yeah, I wanted to wait a little longer to get this up, but oh well! Yeah, what can I say about this chapter, I had fun writing it I guess, but really, this story is just like...a background thing for the next story, but it's important I guess. Confused about anything (other than the obvious "Why did he do it?" thing)  
>So, what do you think? Like it or hate it? What can I do to improve? I'll accept constructive criticism, but please, no flames?<strong>

**Oh yeah, Happy Halloween! :D**

**Damn, it's like..1:26am**

**Goodnight!**

**Next chapter: The First Attack**

**Hm, it should be out in a couple of days, I've already started it after all XD And I'm on half term ^.^**

**~ML**


	2. The First Attack

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own APH or any of its characters. **

**Warnings for this chapter: Violence, Swearing, OC, possible OOC at the end, AU**

**A/N: I would be really enthusiastic normally, and happy (well, yeah I'm happy but...really tired!) but seriously, it's 1:55, I'm tired, I don't have school tomorrow (YAY!)**

**Anyway, I would like to thank you guys so much!  
><span>Silan Haye<span> (first reviewer! :) ), Blatherskite3 and foREVerhauntingme for reviewing and alerts  
><em>Firekat Archer <em>and _WannaDieMiku _for the favourites  
><strong>Bleak Dust** and** Stripes93 (Ah! I know you! I can't believe that you would like my story! I love your ones! :)...kay...fangirling over) **for the alerts as well!**

**Oh yeah, and I refer to Lovino as Romano in this chapter because of last chapter, and stuff that happens later.**

**Enjoy! :)**

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><p><span>The First Attack<span>

_One Year Later, September..._

Damnit, where was he?

Romano tapped his foot impatiently as he waited for Feliciano to get the hell out of there already. He didn't want to stay in the hell hole any longer than he had to. Besides, they had somewhere to go!

The new term had just started, and the cool Autumn breeze was beginning to get on Romano's nerves; it messed up his hair! Why did the weather have to be so damn cold anyway? He frowned as he checked his watch for, who knew how many times it had been already. Why did Feliciano always have to be late?

"Romano! Romano! Roma-"

Said Italian turned round just in time to witness his brother fall over comically, school bag slung over shoulder and now, face down on the ground. He raised an eyebrow at his younger brother's hyperness, before deciding he should probably help him up.

"Ow~!" Feliciano groaned as he took up Romano's hand. In one quick movement, Romano jerked his younger brother up, causing them both to stumble a little before they regained their balence.

"So, why were you late this time? You left me in the fucking cold! And Lars is going to be pissed that we're later than usual!" Romano rambled on angrily whilst Feliciano only gave him a dopey smile in return.

"Oh nothing! This girl asked me to go out with her! But I had to turn her down." Feliciano frowned a little at this before picking up where he left off. "She was really _really_ pretty as well! But she didn't like pasta! How could you not like pasta! It's so amazing~! And then I was thinking if we got married, she would never make me pasta, and that would make me sad...ve~!"

Romano resisted the urge to hit himself on the forehead. His brother was just that special; turning down a pretty girl just because she didn't like his favourite food. Then again, if someone didn't like tomatoes, he probably would have done the same thing.

Dismissing the thought, Romano grabbed his brother by the wrist and began pulling him down the road. The younger of the two instantly had a confused look painted upon his face as he scanned the area.

"Romano, we're going the wrong way! Our house is the other - "

"I know." Romano cut his brother off, not stopping to turn and explain himself. "It's September. It's been one and half years. Guess where we're going, idiota?"

Realization hit Feliciano faster than Romano could throw a tomato at a person he hated. And that was pretty damn fast. Honestly, how could he forget that they were going today? That would explain the flowers that Romano had just pulled out of his bag, after all. Where were they going, you may wonder? Simple.

The graveyard.

* * *

><p>They stood in silence in front of the two gravestones. Both of the headstones had golden letters carved into the Italian marble. The boys let a pregnant silence settle upon them, neither of them knowing who would be the first to break the silence, or even what to say.<p>

Slowly, Romano decided to make a move. He took a couple of steps forward, his feet crushing the golden leaves under him and knelt down. He placed the boquet of white chrysanthemums upon the cold stone and stood back up next to his brother.

_In Loving Memory of_

_Two Perfect Parents_

_Dear Friends_

_Claudio & Rosa Vargas_

Underneath, there birth and death days along with their ages were inscripted. Romano suddenly felt Feliciano wrap his arms around him, in an attempt to comfort himself.

"I miss them, fratello." Feliciano sniffed, leaning his head slightly on Romano's shoulder. He didn't respond, letting his brother hug him slightly as he continued to stare at the gravestone. There hadn't been a night since that he wasn't haunted by those eyes. He remembered them so clearly. A radiant green which shone with malice and insanity.

A nudge. Romano looked down and saw Feliciano's chocolate hair being nuzzled into his shoulder.

"What is it?" he questioned, raising a hand to stroke his hair gently. It was very rare that Romano did this, but Feliciano knew that he really did care.

"Please don't leave me, Romano." he wimpered. Romano's face suddenly transformed into one of shock, before frowning again.

"Of course I won't idiot. What sort of question is that?"

"I... I just had a thought that you were going to leave me alone. Promise please?" Feliciano raised his head to look his older brother in the eye. He had already lost his parents, his grandfather, and he didn't want to lose Romano, under any circumstances.

"Yes, yes, okay. _Te lo prometto, ci sarò, sempre_." Romano reassured his brother. He then rolled his eyes, trying to get rid of the awkwardness of the conversation. Grabbing his bag which had been lying on the ground, he held his brother's hand, tugging gently on it. "Let's go, Feliciano."

* * *

><p>The walk home for the boys was a silent and solemn one. Neither of them wanted to engage in a conversation after their visits. Feliciano knew, for once that his brother was definitely not in a mood to try his 'hug therapy'. Likewise, Romano realised that if he even tried to start a conversation, it would most likely end in him saying something that he would regret and Feliciano might even start crying.<p>

Once they reached the door of their house, Romano froze, holding an arm up to stop his brother frmo proceeding any furthur.

"Something's wrong." Romano's eyes narrowed and shifted to the living room window to the side of them.

"What fratello?" Feliciano asked, tilting his head to the side slightly.

"The curtains."

Feliciano blinked, confused at what was wrong with the curtains. Romano pointed at them, as if the answer was obvious. Of course, they were drawn. And Bella never liked to draw the curtains, saying something about how it was bad for the environment if they always used the indoor lighting it will kill the planet. Romano placed a finger upon his lips, signalling to be quiet.

As quietly as possible, the elder of the two turned the handle and gently pushed the door open. The warmth of their house engulfed them as they stepped in, placing their bags gently on the floor. Romano waved a hand at Feliciano, urging him to follow as they approached the living room door; also closed. Romano pressed an ear against the door, straining to hear any conversation on the other side. Frowning, he got back up.

"Ready?" Romano whispered. The other nodded, preparing for whoever may be in the room. As carefully as possible, Romano pushed the door open.

"It seems like we have guests." A man's voice said smugly. Romano stiffened. "Come in boys, we know you're there."

Hesitantly, Romano pulled the two of them into the living room. Lars was leaning against a wall, glaring at the the men whilst Bella sat on an armchair next to him, legs crossed and green eyes untrusting. There were three unknown men standing up opposite them, all wearing dark suits with burgandy ties, complete with a fedoras resting upon their heads.

"Ve~, Bella, who are these people?" the young Italian blurted out. Romano's eyes widened slightly, wondering why his brother would just be so blunt. These people were obviously intruders and they didn't like them. He could tell that something was terribly wrong.

"You...never told them?" The man nearest to the window asked, feeling smug. "That's...interesting. I would have thought that as part of the World Al-"

He was cut off as Lars drew a dagger out of his pocket, throwing it at the man's shoulder, drawing blood. Bella soon followed suit, jumping up and drop kicking one of the men before kicking the other in the crotch. He doubled over in pain, yet still kept a smug smile upon his face.

"We want them. Now. They belong to us!"

The third man who Bella had previously drop kicked had now recovered and made his way over to the two brothers. Seeing as the Dutch siblings were too occupied with his companions, he decided that he would try and get out of there first. Both brothers had been in a state of shock at what was currently happening in front of their eyes. Taking advantage of this, the man grabbed Romano's arm and tried to pull him out of the room.

Big mistake.

Romano hated to be touched. The only ones who could were people close to him. And this guy was definitely not someone he trusted. In one fluid movement, he grabbed the man's arm by instinct, drawing him close before delivering a quick uppercut to his jaw.

Crying in pain, the man stumbled over towards Feliciano, who got freaked out as soon as he came close. Therefore, he did what he was always told to do if someone was too close for comfort and he had nowhere to run. He raised a leg, and shot it out, giving the man a harsh kick to the stomach.

"Motherfucking BITCHES!"

The scream alerted Lars who had just finished dealing with one of the men. He perked up and ran over to them, grabbing the man by the collar and ramming him into a wall.

"Boys, get out of here!" he ordered.

"But -" Romano was cut short as Lars threw him into a piece of furniture before glaring at Romano, eyes flashing dangerously.

"Now! We'll find you!"

Romano nodded and grabbed the dumbstrucken Feliciano before running out of the house. He didn't want to leave them again, but he trusted them.

They'd meet again soon.

* * *

><p>Eventually, the two boys stopped running, reaching a park not too far away from their school. They made their way over to a small wooden bench, attempting to catch their breath. It was already getting quite dark, so there were not many people lingering about, only the odd hormonal teenage couple and the silent dog walker, ignoring everything around them. A quite serene scene indeed.<p>

"R-Romano, what do you think happened to them?"

"_Staranno bene, prometto_." Romano whispered, trying to comfort the younger one by wrapping his arms around him as he sniffed quietly. Neither of them noticed a young blonde woman step out in front of them. She studied them with her golden eyes before speaking up.

"Hello Mr. and Mr. Vargas."

Romano's head whipped up in surprise and his face twisted into one of annoyance.

"Who. The fuck. Are you?" Romano growled at the woman standing before them. He unconciously tightened his grip around his brother protectively.

"Well, you're a fiesty one. Just like your mother, I guess." The unknown woman smiled down at them kindly. Romano resisted the urge to slap her. He was not in the mood right now and who was she talk about his late mum? However, he had been taught that he should never hit a girl, no matter what.

Damn.

"My name is Imma Costa, and I knew your parents." she continued on, eyes burning down on the two. "We were close friends in fact. They told us that if anything ever happened to them, we should find you and take you in."

"How come you didn't find us earlier if that's true?" Romano interrupted. Imma raised a thin eyebrow at this, but nonetheless continued.

"As soon as we heard what happened, we were absoulutely devastated at the news. We wanted to take you both in straight away, but when we finally tracked you down to the orphanage, they informed us that you had already been taken! We were all extremely worried about what might have happened." She paused, hanging her head slightly in shame, thin strands of honey coloured hair falling in her face, as if remembering something sad. "But now, we've found you! So you can come with us and we can take you guys in!" She clapped her fragile hands together like a little child who had just received their favourite present.

"Who are you?" Feliciano asked softly. Romano, for once, was confused by his brother. He wasn't pouting like when he was upset; he wasn't smiling like the happy idiot he normally was, and he actually seemed to be sensing the mood for once!

Imma seemed to be put off by this question. Didn't she just spend the last few minutes explain who she was?

"I-I told you! My name is Imma Costa and I-"

"Ve..you keep saying 'we'; who are you talking about?"

"Smart, like your father."

"Just answer the damn question, bitch."

"Your brother picks up on small details. That's good. Listen, I can't tell you much here, but I can tell you, that I'm part of an organization that your parents used to work for. If you come with me, then my brother, who is the boss now, can explain more to you, alright?"

The two boys looked at each other. Chocolate met hazel as they both silently had a quick discussion whether to go with this lady or not. Besides, she had just turned up at the exactly after their family had just been attacked. And what was this about a secret organization? How many secrets had they been kept from already? Bella and Lars had just been attacked for no known reason, and now this?

"Now, be good and follow me."

"And why should we follow you, let alone trust you?" Romano snapped back, holding onto Feliciano protectively.

Imma smirked down at the boys, offering a hand out for them to take.

"Because I can also help you find your Grandfather."

* * *

><p><strong>Te lo prometto, ci sarò,sempre - I promise I will, forever<strong>

**Staranno bene, prometto - They'll be fine, I promise.**

**X~X~X~X**

**Okay, so, it's now...late okay? And I'm going to be totally lazy and copy off my Description from dA to here..**

**Okay, I know I told like, a load of you that I'm a bad updater, and it's true. I just had this one started by the time I had the prologue up, but the next update, I don't think will be up for maybe...a week, probably two if I'm realistic :/ Sorry!**  
><strong><br>I've got exams next week, and during my 2 week half term, I haven't revised much..I did history, Maths, Latin and a little Chemistry, but I have 3 other subjects, mainly Spanish which I haven't looked at...**

**Oh yeah, the description is probably where I just ramble on about how my life's going. I don't really write in journals much... I think I should though...I might **

**Are you still confused about the organization and stuff?**  
><strong>Good. That's the point. It's a hint, but I promise, most of it will be explained next chapter, when they meet DA BOSS.<strong>

**Also, I'm actually interested in your opinion on this. So, please tell me in a review or something, I might have a poll, but**

**...Would you guys mind if I started doing this feature thing, where I feature youtube vids/fanfics/deviations on each chapter?  
>...am I even allowed to do that? XD Let me know, because I might start that, like "This chapter's feature is:" And then give you guys a link or something?<br>Most of the links will probably Spamano or something though...(Tis my OTP, but there isn't any in this fic)**

**Right, terribly sorry for the overly long A/N's, but that's how I use them! So, I guess you could either ignore them, or bare with me XD**

**Goodnight/day/evening/afternoon/whatever time you're at!**

**~ML**

**Review? Any mistakes or criticisms? **

**xxx**


	3. Who do you think you are?

**DISCLAIMER:**** I don't own APH or any of it's characters.  
>However, I own Imma, Vito and Michele! ^.^<strong>

**Warnings:...oh come on, do I have to do this with every chapter? There's swearing, OC's and I think that's it for this chapter...**

**A/N: I'm so going to be late for school, so be happy! :P **

**Thank you to Silan Haye, foREVerhauntingme and Stripes93 for the reviews! :D**

****_Flan-chanlollipop_ for fave and alert! :D _Rinkuu, Allers3 and PrincessfuFU_ and _Cuore l'anima della _for adding this to Story alert!

**Just one more quick note...I don't like how this one turned out, sorry for the suckiness! xD**

* * *

><p>The boys stared at the outstretched hand, taking in the newly found information. Their grandfather...was alive?<p>

In addition, this woman _knew_ where he was?

Feliciano tugged gently on Romano's sleeve, snapping him out of his trance. He knew that his brother was just shocked at the information, but it was obvious the pretty lady was waiting for an answer, and pretty ladies shouldn't be kept waiting.

"Well boys?"

"_Non mi fido di lei_"

Imma raised an eyebrow, her mouth forming a thin line. She wondered how the boys didn't realise that she could understand Italian too; one would have guessed from her last name after all. However, she kept silent, wondering what would happen if she just let this play out. Perhaps, this could work out in her favour.

"_Ma potrebbe aiutarci a trovare il Nonno! Così saremo di nuovo una famiglia!_" Feliciano protested, shaking his brother's arm gently.  
>"<em>O potrebbe mentirci! Non sappiamo nemmeno se lei...se lei è un' estranea, maledizione!<em>"

"_Ve! Ti prego, Romano! Nessuna sa niente sul nonno! Conoscevano anche Mamma e Papà! Per favore, sono sicuro che andrà tutto bene!_"

Romano stared at his younger brother, realising that chocolate eyes were burning with determination. He knew that once that Feliciano had his mind set on something, he probably wouldn't give up until he got it. Whether he agreed to go or not, Feliciano would have just dragged him along anyway. He drew in a deep breath.

"Fine. But only because I trust you, stupid idiot." Roman's eyes narrowed. Sure, he trusted his brother's judgement sometimes, but…what about Bella and Lars? Surely, they should go back to them, right?

Imma frowned. Although Romano had agreed to come along, it still didn't mean that he wanted to. It was a good thing, she supposed that Romano wanted to make sure everything was right before he agreed to anything. That would come in use for anything involving analysis later on. But overall, she knew she was fighting a losing battle. Well, there was only one thing left to do.

"Just if you're wondering how I found you," This got the Italians' attention, halting their private discussion. "Bella and Lars sent me."

That was final thing that would set off the chain of events.

"Ve~! See Romano! Let's go then!" Feliciano jumped up, pulling Romano up in the process and skipped closer towards Imma and grabbing her hand; she was smiling softly at them. Thank God that went well; otherwise she may have had to resort to force.

"Great! Then let's go! My car is just outside this park!"

With that, Feliciano used his free hand to grab Imma's and began dragging them both out of the park. It was easy to spot which car it was, seeing as it had tinted windows and a chauffeur standing near the front of the car. As soon as he spotted the trio coming towards him, he straightened up and opened the back door.

The three of them swiftly made their way into the back seats of the car, with Feliciano darting in excitedly, Romano following with a frown and Imma, a cynical look casting itself onto her face. She took one quick check, to make sure that no one was watching them. Besides, one could never be too certain. Happy that there wasn't anyone, she followed suit and faced the chauffeur.

"Where to?" he asked politely.

"Do you really have to ask?" Imma scowled at him. She was in no mood to play games right now.

The driver chuckled, but nonetheless, silenced himself and started up the ignition.

"Ve~! It's like we're secret agents Romano! Look! The windows are tinted and everything! And we're in a fast black car, and that man is well dressed and -!" Romano clamped a hand over his brother's mouth, not wanting to hear any more nonsense.

"Shut up… you're beginning to annoy me."

Imma laughed at the display; she placed sugary sweet smile on her face.

"Secret agents? I guess so, Feliciano. We are secret, and I suppose you could call us agents!" she chipped in, cheerily. Romano only gave her a dead panned look. He was really beginning to hate her more and more. But he had promised himself he would always look after his brother… who stupidly went along with this stranger.

"What do you do anyway?" Romano asked, raising an eyebrow. Imma leaned back on the leather seats.

"Well, as I said. We are a secret organization. I guess you could say we're similar to the mafia, but not really… we… well, we help them deal with certain things. It's mostly to do with anyone who hasn't paid their debts, or maybe just a good old trade." Her eyes glinted with slight malice as she spoke.

"B-but if you're with the mafia… why would mama and papa help you?" Feliciano asked. Why would such a nice and pretty lady be helping the mafia? Imma threw her head back and laughed.

"Oh! You're so cute! No, we...help the mafia I guess, but we help the people in debt to them. So, we're like the better side of the mafia. And in return for people working for us, we pay you. Money, or otherwise. In your case, we're going to try and find your grandfather for you."

"Ve… I'm tired… How long until we get there?" Feliciano asked, rubbing his eyes. He leant down to rest his head onto Romano's shoulder.

"About an hour, you can have a rest."

Feliciano didn't need to be told twice as he almost instantly fell asleep. It had been a long and tiring day for him already, and he didn't even get to take a siesta today. This left Imma and Romano in an awkward silence. They were both staring at each other, trying to figure the other out. Romano knew that there was something that she wasn't telling them, and Imma was just trying to find out why Romano didn't trust her as much as his brother.

"What do you want from us?" Romano questioned bluntly, making sure that his voice was low enough so as not to wake his brother.

"I promise, I just came on orders, and also to make sure you two were looked after properly." Romano scoffed at this.

"Whatever, bitch. You said that you would tell us if we came with you. I'm not an idiot, there's something you want in return isn't there?"

Imma scowled and looked out of the window. Well, this brat was annoying She definitely preferred the other kid.

The rest of the journey was surrounded by complete silence 

* * *

><p>"We're here."<p>

Romano's eyes fluttered open. He hadn't even realised when he had fallen asleep! Gently, he shook his brother awake, who groaned and began to mumble something about being too tired. Romano scowled and grabbed his brother by the arm and pulled him out of the car.

They seemed to be in an underground car park, each space filled with an expensive and glossy looking cars, all in dark colours. Their footsteps echoed throughout the car park as they followed Imma towards a lift. The metal doors slid easily open as they entered. As soon as they reached their destination, Imma led the boys out and into a room at the end of the corridor. As they passed, Romano decided to peek through any doors which were open. There was a room where a sparring match was going on, one room which had a woman studying some documents and another with a man in a white lab coats, mixing a few chemicals together.

Finally, they reached a simple black lacquered door. There was a wall mounted swipe card machine. Imma took out her own card from her pocket and after swiping it, pushed the handle down. She motioned for the boys to follow her in. She knocked twice on the door, before pushing it open.

"Michele? I'm coming in."

"Imma! How many times have I told you that -" Michele turned round, instantly spotting Romano and Feliciano.

"Ve~! You have a big and pretty room!" Feliciano exclaimed, light brown eyes darting everywhere, taking in every little feature of the intricate and modern design. Most of it had a monochrome colour scheme, but there were small subtle hints of other colours such as the navy flower vase upon the dark brown desk near the centre of the room. Books and files lined the walls on both sides with a large window, stretching from the ceiling to the floor, which would allow floods of light to fill the room whenever it was sunny.

Whilst Feliciano was assessing the room itself, Romano was taking in the image of Michele Costa. So, this was the boss? Well, he didn't look like one. He had expected the boss to be some serious looking man with absolutely no emotions whatsoever. In fact, he was quite the contrary.

Michele Costa was stood behind the desk dressed in a smart, fashionable suit, staring at them in surprise. He was very lightly tanned and had black, slightly scruffy hair. His face didn't look stern enough to control a whole secret organization.

However, the thing that stood out most was his eyes. Like his sister, he too had golden eyes. They shone brightly and seemed to burn into him.

"My… it's really you. You look so alike." Michele whispered, slowly approaching them. Once he was standing in front of them, scanned their faces. It was really amazing how much they looked like their parents. He smiled. "Imma, you can leave now."

"No, I think I'd like to stay," the blonde retorted, smirking as she jumped to sit on his desk and crossed her legs over each other. She smiled sweetly at her brother. But he would have none of it.

"Imma."

"Oh fine! Someone's in a bad mood today!" She scowled, pushing herself off again and made her way across the room. "Goodbye boys!"

_Slam!_

Feliciano jumped at the sudden loud noise. Romano rolled his hazel eyes and Michele just hid his face in his hands. He motioned for them to sit in the two leather chairs in front of his desk. He made his way round so as that he could sit back in his own chair. Once he sat himself down, he closed his eyes and sighed.

"… Aren't you going to tell us anything?" Romano asked, irritated that he had pretty much been kidnapped, and now this guy, who was supposed to help them find their grandfather, wasn't even saying anything.

"Ve~ Romano, don't be so rude…"

"Shut it, Feli! It's your fault we're here."

A low chuckle stopped the boys from continuing their 'discussion'

"You really are like your parents, you know." Michele sat up straight before leaning on his hands, propping himself up. His eyes darted to his left, instantly perking up and they landed on a picture frame. He turned it round so that the brothers could see it.

"That's...mama and papa…" Feliciano whispered.

It was true. The picture seemed to be from a wedding. To be more specific, it was the wedding picture of Rosa and Claudio Vargas. Michele and Imma were standing at the side. Along with them were a number of people, whom neither brothers had ever seen before. All the wedding pictures that they've ever seen, they're parents were alone!

"It was a beautiful day. Everyone was so happy, and Claudio, well, he just couldn't believe that he had himself a wife as beautiful as Rosa." Michele thought out loud. Even Romano didn't interrupt him. He wanted to know more after all. "I had known Claudio for quite some time really. Even our parents, or our grandparents, I believe knew each other."

He turned the picture frame back so that it was facing him again.

"I assume why you want to know that I got Imma to basically kidnap you?"

"Yeah. What the fuck was that about?"

"Romano!"

"Romano? Nice name, kid. And what's yours? I can't just constantly call you kid all the time y'know, kid?" He directed his question at Feliciano.

"Feliciano Vargas! Or you can call me Feli! Ve~!"

"Right, well. I'm not going to waste any time. I'll just explain to it as quickly as I can. It's getting late, and I don't want you boys to be too tired!" He smiled at them kindly. Romano raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. This guy was beginning to bore him… like most other people. "As you can see, or Imma has explained, I am the boss of this...organization you could call it. We work for the Mafia, in a way. We do all the 'smaller' jobs that they can't do, or perhaps just don't have the time to; usually the latter. Both of your parents, had been trained, as you boys have been, unknowingly since you were young, to join our organization."

Michele locked eyes with each boy for a couple of seconds, to let them take in the information before continuing on.

"Rosa and Claudio; one of our best ever agents. The missions they did together were amazing. Always flawless and completed quickly as well! Not only were they our best people, but Claudio, was my best friend." He casted his honey eyes down, as he seemed to think over what he was going to say next. "As soon as we heard that… that they had been murdered, we were all devastated. But, I had remembered that Claudio had children, and that he had asked me to tell you all about his secret life he used to live. To teach you and raise you as if you were my own. I owe him that much. He saved my life once."

"Why didn't they tell us themselves then?" Romano's hands clenched into fists and he glared at the floor angrily. Why would his parents keep a secret like that from their own kids?

"Ve~… Romano, calm down… they probably had their own reasons." Feliciano reached out a hand to try and comfort his brother, but as soon as he came close, Romano flinched away. "What if they were trying to protect us?"

"Your brother's right." Michele cut in before Romano could respond. A confused look crossed his face as Michele took this as a cue to go on. "We have enemies, naturally. But they were dangerous. They change their name often, so we don't know what they're called. We here, want to help people. How do we do that if we're related with the Mafia? Well, we help the people who are in debt. But, if they cannot pay us back, then what can we do?" He made a slicing motion across his neck, accompanied with a sickening sound.

"B-but, why would Mama and Papa do that?" Feliciano questioned, eyes wide with innocence. "T-they wouldn't kill someone, would they?" Michele sighed.

"Sometimes, there are also people who try to kill others. Assassins. I guess that we were also, the assassins of the assassins. To protect one person, important to the mafia, we must protect them at all cost… do you understand? Doesn't matter, you'll get it eventually."

"Your parents… were just amazing. Perfect. Which is why, I'm hoping that you boys, will join us. You help us, with missions and such. And in return, we'll help you find your Grandfather. You can be a family…"

Romano hesitated, as did Feliciano. They were still confused about why their parents would want to join an organization like this. But, their parents had trusted this man… he had even gone to their wedding! And lastly, they could help find their grandfather!

A cough.

The boys both directed their attention back to Michele as soon as they heard his short cough.

"So, boys. Will you join us, and carry on your parents' legacy?"

Romano and Feliciano looked at each other, hazel and chocolate eyes locking as they tried to read the other's eyes. Romano, although angry that his parents had never told them anything, was always curious. Therefore, he wanted to find out more. Feliciano, on the other hand, wanted to find his grandfather. He wanted the feeling of a family again. Yes, Bella and Lars had been so kind to them, but they weren't their real blood family. At least, whatever choice they made, the two brothers would stay together.

"Well?" Michele asked, raising an eyebrow.

The two nodded simultaneously.

"Good. Your training starts immediately." He snapped his fingers once. Instantly, a young boy stepped out of the darkness from behind the desk, revealing his sandy blond hair. His honey eyes stared coldly at him, with no readable expression. He only looked a couple years older than Romano, and didn't look like one to be working for a criminal organization. Romano was shocked that he didn't even notice there was someone else in the room. "Vito, take give them a room to stay in. Their training will begin tomorrow, and they will most likely join your sessions. You will be in charge of getting them settled in. Understood de Luca?"

Vito nodded, staying silent and walking towards the door, the Italian twins following in suit.

As soon as the three boys were out of the room. Michele smirked, golden eyes glowing triumphantly.

"Welcome to _Sangue del Teschio_."

* * *

><p><em>Thunk<em>

Lars dropped the last of the Skull's Blood men onto the ground. After the two boys had left, reinforcements had come in. Nothing that he and his sister couldn't handle anyway. Bella had gone to wash her hands which were previously covered in blood. He scanned the room. Well, it looked like a damn mess now right?

_Ring ring_

Frowning, Lars dug his hand into his pocket, pulling out a small flip phone and instantly raising it to his ear.

"They're gone."

"I know."

"They've taken them. You were supposed to protect them, remember?"

Lars rubbed the bridge of his nose. Honestly, his boss could get so blunt sometimes. You would never really expect that from them.

"Don't worry. You and Bella should get back to us now. I'm sure that our agent there will take care of it; they'll be more experienced I guess. Good job so far, but we need you back here. Who knows what they're going to make those boys do next. Take care."

* * *

><p><strong>Aaanddd! Stop! :D<strong>

**Translations, in order of appearance, I think...they're all Italian:**

**Non mi fido di lei - I don't trust her  
>Ma potrebbe aiutarci a trovare il Nonno! - But she could help us find Grandpa!<br>Così saremo di nuovo una famiglia!- Then we could be a family again!  
>O potrebbe mentirci! - Or she could be lying<br>Non sappiamo nemmeno se lei...se lei - Do we even know that she just..that she  
>She's a stranger, dammit! - She's a stranger damnit!<br>Ve! Ti prego, Romano! Nessuna sa niente sul nonno! - Ve!Please Romano, no one knows about Grandpa (For Tatty: Did I use the right one here?)  
>Conoscevano anche Mamma e Papà! - They knew mum and dad too!<br>Per favore, sono sicuro che andrà tutto bene! - Please, I know that this is going to work!  
>Sangue del Teschio - Skull's Blood<strong>

**Right...so...Oh yeah! I know some people in America read this story...so...**

**HAPPY THANKSGIVING!**

**I hope you guys all have a great day! :) Everyone, not just the people in America, but you guys too! :D**

**Pssttt...guys..guess what?**

**It's my birthday! Woop! :D**

**So...please review? As a present? xD**

**Nah, you don't actually have to, but thanks for reading!**

**Now I have to run to school! xD**

**~ML**

**xx**


	4. Vito

**DISCLAIMER:**** I don't own APH or any of it's characters**

**Okay~ so~!**

**ecanerdygirl for adding this to Story Alerts and Favourites~**

**101Icestormxx, Akira Cat and River94 for adding this to Favourites~!**

**...Wow...I really left this for ages haven't I? *facepalm* Blame facebook...or just the fact I procrastinate too much~! xD**

**But yeah, this chapter...is filler I guess, but I'm gonna start working on the next one after I finish something...which was supposed to be for Valentine's Day...it's late already OTL**

**But I'm on Half Term now~ Yay~! So, I'm gonna be doing more writing I guess~! Thank you for those who reviewed as well! Oh yeah, and just so you know, if any of you have dA, my username is exactly the same there, and I tend to be on there more often. This story is on my profile too~ Oh, and I got a tumblr...both links will be on my profile later~!**

***sigh* Short chapter is short...**

**Enjoy I guess~**

**~A**

* * *

><p>"Ve~! So, what's your name?" Feliciano asked as soon as the door behind them was shut. Romano wanted to slap his brother over the head. Who cared about the fact this guy was supposed to help them get around; he was still a stranger.<p>

"Vito de Luca." Vito answered shortly, shoving his hands into his trouser pockets.

"Oh! What a nice name~! I'm Feliciano Vargas!" Feliciano introduced himself, grinning at his new found friend. Vito smirked at his childish-ness. It wasn't often that they got people in Skull's Blood which were as optimistic or carefree as this kid as.

"How about you, pouty?" Vito smirked, golden eyes glinting as he turned his head to nod at Romano. The latter spluttered and blushed slightly, annoyed at the fact this stranger had already given him a nickname.

"Why the hell do you need to know, fucker?" Romano spat at the blond. Vito's golden eyes sparkled with mischief.

"Fine, don't tell me. I'll just call you 'Pouty', alright Pouty?" Vito smirked, pleased with the reactions that he was getting from the dark haired Italian. It wasn't always that he got to mess around with people.

"It's Romano, bastard..." Romano grumbled, still unknowingly pouting. Vito smiled in response. Cute kid. Turning into a smaller and darker corridor, Vito navigated the two boys towards the further end. As they went along, they realised each of the doors seemed to have a name on them, even passing one which had inscribed on it "de Luca". Finally, they reached the end of the corridor where the rooms seemed to be bigger.

"The rooms here are normally double and have a bathroom. You're lucky." Vito laughed. He stopped in front of a dark door; inscribed on the front in gold lettering was 'Vargas'. Withdrawing a key, the blond swiftly unlocked the door and pushed the door open, revealing the room with a flourish.

"We're here."

* * *

><p>"I hope you two don't mind sharing." Vito remarked. "Because really, it's either this or nothing. And honestly, this is pretty damn good already. The closets have clothes already, for missions, training, casual and formal and the bathroom already has towels, robes, toothbrushes and all other basic essentials in the cabinets." He pointed to the left of the room where there was another white door, which they presumed led to the bathroom.<p>

The room itself was quite large and comforting compared to the intimidating office and dark corridors. Two beds (One with a blue colour scheme, the other green), lay parallel to each other at the back of the room, both neatly made. Likewise, there were two bedside tables with drawers for whatever the two younger Italians wanted there. A cream sofa lay at the foot of one of the beds facing a wall hung television and a desk under it. To complete the room, they had two matching wardrobes and a bookshelf.

"Wow..." Feliciano was amazed. He never had a room like this before, it was amazing! And best of all? he got to share it with his brother! He yawned; that nap in the car wasn't enough and the bed looked...so comfy... "I'm going to have a shower, ve..." he announced before lazily making his way into the bathroom.

Romano sauntered over to the green bed, flopping onto it and stared at the ceiling. He vaguely noted that Vito had sat himself down on the cream sofa on the end of Feliciano's bed. He scowled and turned his head to question him.

"What are you still doing here, I thought all you had to do was lead us to the room?"

"My instructions were to take you to your room, yes, but I have to be your babysitter until you get settled in." Vito smirked in triumph. Romano frowned looked back up at the ceiling.

An uncomfortable silence lingered around them.

Eventually, it began to get on Romano's nerve, and curiousity also got the better of him.

"So, your family actually let you join this fucked up organization instead of letting you carry on with your own life? Or did they fucking kidnap you too?" Romano grumbled, crossing his arms. Vito blinked at him, before his face cracked into a smile.

"Well, yes and no I guess. This was my choice as well, and in fact, my family was the one who wanted me to join. I wasn't kidnapped, but this isn't exactly my dream job either." Vito explained, reaching up to casually play with a bit of his golden hair.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Romano inquired, raising an eyebrow. Vito sat up, blinking at Romano in amusement. He honestly thought that it was obvious.

"I thought you would have picked it up by now. I honestly wonder why they would pick you if you haven't figured it out by now!" Vito let out a hearty laugh whilst Romano fumed.

"Figured what, bastard? Do you just wanna tell me?" Romano scowled. Vito was really beginning to annoy him now. He couldn't believe that he had to be looked after by this guy for the next couple of weeks. Honestly, he wasn't a little kid!

"Ve~! Isn't it obvious Romano? Michele is his older brother too~!"

Romano and Vito turned in the direction of the new voice. Feliciano stood at the door with nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist. Vito politely looked away whilst Romano spluttered, reaching into a wardrobe to throw his brother undergarments.

"Holy fuck, Feli! Who comes out of the bathroom half naked?" Romano lectured. "Honestly, stop doing that!" Feliciano only laughed at his older brother's frustration, catching the clothes with ease and slipping them on. Once he was finally clothed, he bounced over to the blue bed and plopped onto it.

"Why don't they have the same last name then? In case you've forgotten they have _different_ last names!" Romano challenged.

"True, but he was closer than you, Vargas. We're cousins actually. Now, Feliciano, tell me. How did you know? Perhaps you could enlighten Romano here to make him a better agent?" Vito taunted. In the background, Romano was pissed. The nerve of this fucktard.

"Really Romano, it was obvious!" Feliciano blinked innocently and smiled, only have a pillow thrown in his general direction. Laughing it off, Feliciano continued. "Vito has pretty eyes! Just like Mr. Costa!"

The blond smiled at the young Italian's thoughts on his eyes, and how he saw his older cousin. If only he knew...

"Really? You expect me to believe that you fucking found out that they're related, just by looking at their eyes?"

"Ve~!" Feliciano just nodded happily at his brother, whilst Romano's eye began to twitch dangerously and looked like he was going to wring his brother's neck. Raising an eyebrow at the scene in front of him, Vito decided it was time for the two juniors to finally settle down and sleep. Getting up, he stretched his arms up towards the ceiling and turned to face the door.

"Right, it's getting late and I better go. I probably have to help you guys round here for the next couple of weeks. There is no schedule to what we do really." Vito explained whilst the Vargas brothers got changed and got into bed. Still facing the door, he continued. "But for us, because we are under eighteen - or at least, you two are - we have lessons. Most of the older agents will be teaching us all the standard stuff, but things that we'll never use, they'll be training sessions." Vito finished and turned around

"Ve~, will I get to make pasta?" Feliciano yawned from his bed, making Vito chuckle.

"Of course, go take a cooking class and you'll be fine."

He walked out of the room, switching off light as he left the room. However, before he shut the door, he spoke once more. "Go to sleep, we're meeting with our martial arts teacher in the morning. _Before_ breakfast. Buonanotte."


	5. The Martial Arts Trainer

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own APH of any of it's characters**_  
><em>

**Warnings: ...Swearing. Can we just assume, every chapter will have swearing? Possible OOC-ness and OCs**

**A/N: ...where the hell did I disappear to?! /shot**

**...I don't have an excuse. I just got lazy, even over summer. I mean, term time was pretty stressful, but Summer, I just got lazy... I'm so sorry guys and I love all of you who are still sticking with the story. Thank you for the faves and alerts!**

**Did you know I had to re-write this whole chapter? I plugged in my USB a couple of days ago, and... nothing came up! The pop-up window and I tried getting the files manually, but I couldn't! I tried it on the family PC too, and that didn't work. So I basically lost all the fanfiction and original stories that I have ever written... sucks, right?**

**Oh well**

**Ah, one more thing ;D**

**Happy Birthday Stripes!**

**I hope you had an amazing day and I'm very award that it's close to midnight... I wrote you another fic as well, but then the USB thing happened... So, I'll try re-write it for tomorrow, okay? :) I love you and you are one of the most talented writers and best people I have ever met before! Not to mention that you're also amazingly kind and beautiful! **

**Everyone, go wish her a happy birthday? :) (Stripes93 on here, Randomness14 on dA and momothestripes on tumblr)**

**Okay, so here's a really long chapter which I haven't read over yet cos it's 3:40am to make up for my disappearance.**

**~A**

* * *

><p><em>Knock knock knock!<em>

Romano groaned as he was awoken by some annoying fucker who dared disturb him early in the morning. Turning over in his bed, he lazily cracked one eye open to see his younger brother sleeping peacefully sleeping in his own bed. However, something seemed… different about his surroundings. For one thing, when had Feliciano and he shared a room?

A rattle of keys sounded just outside and Romano slowly sat up, scratching his head and letting the covers slide of his body. He scowled as he recognised the sandy haired man who had decided to just let himself into their room.

"Come on, boys! Time to get out of bed!" Vito commanded, walking in between the two beds as he made his way to the window, drawing open the curtains to let the sunlight stream through.

"Argh! What the fuck did you do that for?" Romano winced as the sunlight managed to hit him in the eye, falling back onto his bed and pulling the covers over himself again. "Fucking bastard…" Vito chuckled quietly at the older Vargas before turning to the younger teenager who also seemed to not want to get out of bed. Well, at least Feliciano was a lot calmer than Romano.

"Five more minutes?" Feliciano begged, pouting and looking up at the blonde with innocent eyes. However, Vito shook his head, going to their wardrobes to pick out suitable loose clothes for them to wear for that day. They were going to need something easy to move around in after all.

Groaning, Feliciano sleepily swung his legs over the side and placed his feet upon the soft rug under his bed. Shuffling over to his brother's bed, he gently shook his shoulder and yanked the sheets from his head.

"Feli! Why the fuck would you do that?" Romano snapped, glaring hatefully at his little brother who seemed to be unfazed by it. Besides, Feliciano knew that he didn't really mean it. He had, however, lived with Romano for long enough to eventually be able to tell when he was really angry with him or not, or when he was just saying mean things because he was tired or hungry.

"But… Vito said that we had to get up." He reasoned, grabbing Romano's arm and began to drag him off the bed, literally. Strangely enough, Romano had not been expecting this and suddenly found himself on the floor with the duvet still tangled between his limbs. Groaning, he quietly cursed his brother before he lifted himself off the floor. The blonde smirked at the brother's antics before going to stand at their door again.

"Okay, that's enough messing about boys. Get up and put these on." He instructed, tossing them both the clothes that he had picked out. Feliciano's landed on his bed whilst Romano's clothes managed to land on top of him which made his younger giggle quietly. Vito nodded to himself, satisfied with his aiming. "Right, well when you two are done getting changed, I'll be waiting outside so I can bring you to breakfast, got it?" he asked. Both boys nodded and began to change as soon as he left the room.

Soon after, Vito heard the door behind him open and smirked at the two boys who exited their room. Without another word, he began to walk out of the sleeping area and took them to the kitchen, with Feliciano babbling on about something which he wasn't too sure what. Something about tasty food. Neither he nor Romano would have been able to reply even if they had wanted to as the hyper teenager just carried on talking, hardly needing to take a breath between words.

Once they had reached the dining hall which was already quite empty save a few other people whom the boys could only assume were other agents in training or something similar, the three of them collected their breakfast and sat down at a small empty table. As Feliciano contently ate his food, Romano decided to poke his scrambled eggs around on his plate, resting his head on his propped up arm. He was still pissed at the blonde who sat across from him for waking him up so damn early. What the hell did he need him up for anyway?

"I honestly think that you should eat, Romano. You'll want your energy for later on." Vito advised as he spotted the young Italian playing with his food. Romano rolled his chocolate eyes at his advice, completely ignoring him as he continued to play around. "You'll need it."

"Ve! You should listen to him, Romano!" Feliciano chimed in. "Because Vito's smart and he knows a lot of things!" The dark haired Italian scowled at his little brother sucking up to this prick while Vito just laughed quietly and shook his head.

"Whatever," Romano muttered, finally eating properly. His dark eyes flickered up to the blonde who had already finished with his food and was now looking around the room, mumbling quietly to himself. Finishing his own food quickly, he frowned at Vito. "So, what are we going to do today anyway?"

"Training and you'll probably have lessons or something. You should technically still be in school so we're going to make sure you still learn something." Vito stated, golden eyes still scanning the room for someone.

"What kind of training?"

"Hand-to-hand combat, close range and maybe weapons." Romano sat up, his curiousity peaking. Weapons? Really? He felt the corners of his mouth turn up in a smirk as he thought of himself holding a gun. Was he going to learn how to shoot today? Just the thought of it made adrenaline pump through his veins. "Not firearms though. That'll be tomorrow or later on this week." Romano's smirk dropped. And just like that, Vito had managed to piss Romano off for the second time that morning.

"But… weapons are scary!" Feliciano whined, after finishing his own breakfast as well. "What if we hurt people? What if I hurt myself? I don't want to be hurt!" he wailed, panic evident in his voice as it rose with each sentence. Vito shook his head, smiling slightly and reaching over to pat the boy's head.

"Hey, it's alright, Feliciano!" Vito assured him in a tranquil tone. "No one's going to get hurt," he smiled. Well, no one yet. But as soon as the boys were confident enough to go on solo missions, then it was basically just tranquilizer guns for them. "Besides, we'll train you up so that you won't get hurt, okay?" Romano's hand collided with his forehead at his little brother's small panic attack. God, he always over dramatised everything! It was just plain annoying.

"Who were you looking around for earlier?" Romano suddenly inquired, remembering how the blonde had obviously been searching for someone in the room.

"Your teacher." Vito answered shortly, smirking slightly. He honestly found it entertaining when the brunet got angry. His reactions were very entertaining indeed.

"Helpful, bastard." The Italian scowled. "Fine, if you can't answer that question, then at least tell me what our parents were involved in?" his tone turned serious, dark eyes burning into Vito's golden ones.

"That's something that you should really ask Michele." He replied, smirking mischievously as he avoided answering his questions. Well, it wasn't his fault that Romano was asking things that he wouldn't know about, right? He would only answer something he would have knowledge about and all he knew were the basics. Or at least, that was all he was s_upposed_ to know. "So sorry, I can't really answer that." Vito added, matching Romano's glare.

"Do… do you really help the mafia?" Feliciano's soft voice asked nervously. The blonde's honey eyes flickered to the younger Vargas, smiling softly at him. He seemed to be a lot more innocent and naïve that his older brother. Well, that would change soon.

"It's… complicated," Vito started, motioning his hands to try and express himself. "Honestly, I don't really understand it well either," he lied smoothly. Best not to tell the two boys how it really worked yet. "Just don't worry about it okay? We get information and our methods are just a bit more… forward. It really is a long process and again, you should ask Michele, or maybe Imma about it, okay?" he smiled.

"You are _so_ helpful…" Romano commented, his voice heavily laced with sarcasm as he rolled his eyes and got up.

"Aren't I?" Vito smirked, playing along as he knew that it would only piss off the teenager more. "Right, so now that you're done, let's go." He ordered, standing up and leading the way out of the dining hall.

"Where?" Feliciano tilted his head, walking next to Vito whilst Romano trailed behind them, hands shoved into the pockets of his shorts, muttering curses at the blonde in front of him.

"To your first training session."

* * *

><p>A little while later, Vito had led them to the entrance of a large martial arts studio. However, before they entered, the blonde placed a finger to his lips, motioning to the two younger boys to be quiet as they entered. They both nodded. Cautiously, he pushed one of the large wooden doors open, revealing a spotless room. The floors were covered in navy floor mats and there were a variety of long weapons such as spears, long swords, staffs and clubs which hung impressively on the wall directly parallel to them. On their right, there lay a station with weights all neatly lined up next to each other and on their left, a display of smaller weapons like daggers, shuriken and nunchucks were the only one that the Vargas brothers recognised; of course this knowledge had only been attained because of various movies that they had watched.<p>

In the middle of the room sat an Asian man in a loose red gi with gold trimming who had a thin, shiny ponytail who was sitting with his back to them. His legs were cross legged as he muttered a short mantra to himself. Romano began to walk forward, intending to get the man's attention. Suddenly, he was stopped by a strong tanned hand on his shoulder.

He didn't even have to look behind him to realise it was Vito who had stopped him, yet again.

Shrugging his arm off, he was about to turn to scowl at the older male when he saw him walk past him calmly before sitting next to the man with the ponytail, crossing his legs, sitting up straight as he too also began to meditate. Understanding immediately, Feliciano bounced over next to Vito and sat next to him, mimicking his actions and attempting to start to meditate as well. Eventually, his shoulders seemed to be more relaxed and the atmosphere around him turned calm as well.

Romano wasn't sure whether to be surprised or just plain annoyed. For one thing, Feliciano had actually calmed himself within a matter of minutes – something that he had been trying his whole life to do. Secondly, fuck was he joining that weird ponytail guy, the bastard and his bratty little brother in doing whatever the hell they were doing. It seemed boring! Rolling his eyes, he crossed his arms and went over to his left to the display of the smaller weapons.

He stared in awe at the weapons, wondering if he would be handling any of them that day. At least that would be one good thing! Perhaps he would learn how to wield them properly and then he'd be able to use them in a mission one day! Smirking slightly, he imagined himself, twirling a sai sword in each hand as he stood over a man who was a lying on the ground, a quivering mess. He wouldn't admit it, but just the idea of becoming some kind of secret agent did excite him! Because really, what teenager had never thought of becoming a secret agent?

Glancing over the trio on the mats, he made sure they all had their eyes closed before he turned back at the weapons. Slowly, he reached out, intending to grab a pair of the sai swords off the wall. Besides, there wasn't any harm in trying, was there?

_Shink!_

Romano froze.

A thin dagger was now planted straight into the wall, between him and the pair of sai swords he had wanted to get, right where his hand would have been if he had moved a centimetre closer. Nervously, he took his hand back, and turned to see the three men all still sitting there.

"Please don't touch my weapons without asking," the man in the gold and red gi said calmly, his left arm outstretched with fingers pointed in the exact direction where the stiletto sword had landed. Romano shuddered at how close the dagger had been. "And next time, I think you should meditate with us too." Vito laughed quietly under his breath, which earned him a sharp jab in the side from the ebony haired man. "You need to stop being so immature."

"Wow! How did you do that?" Feliciano grinned, turning to the man in admiration. Romano scowled. Yeah, he was fine if anyone else was interested. You know, except for the fact that he almost had his right hand impaled by a stranger! Because _everyone_ cared about him, didn't they?

"Practice," the Asian man smiled, opening his eyes to reveal chocolate eyes, perhaps just a shade darker than Romano's. He and Vito both stood up, Feliciano following them soon after. "I am Yao Wang, it is nice to meet you." Yao bowed slightly to them.

"It's nice to meet you too!" Feliciano grinned, about to leap onto the Chinese man to give him a greeting hug. However, Vito realised what he was doing and grabbed the back of his shirt, pulling him back roughly. Yao nodded him in thanks; he had always been quite a touchy person when it came to public displays of affection.

"Sensei Wang is from China and has been teaching here for… well, I don't really know! He's been here since I started and is definitely the best martial arts teacher on this planet. You'll get nothing but the best here after all," Vito explained, bowing back to his former teacher. "Sensei, this is Feliciano and Romano Vargas." He introduced, motioning to both boys respectively. "Michele has informed you to train them, correct?"

"Indeed he has." Yao nodded, before turning to the two Italian brothers. "Right, so shall we get started? Best not to waste time! You must concentrate and be focused if you want to reach your full potential!" he lectured. "Romano?" the Chinaman asked, making sure he had the right brother as he turned to the darker brunette still near the weapons. When he looked up in response, he smiled. "Would you mind pulling my stiletto out of the wall and returning it?"

The teenager scowled, but still placed his hand upon the hilt of the dagger, gripping it tightly and pulling it back with all his might.

It didn't move.

Well fuck it. He frowned and clenched his teeth together, trying to pull it out again. Damnit, what the hell was wrong with the fucking dagger anyway? It wasn't even in the wall that deep! Sighing, Vito went up to him and gently took his hand off. It was getting painful to watch. Twisting the sword back and forth a couple of times, the blonde managed to easily pull it out of the wall before handing it back to the martial arts trainer. Romano glared hatefully at him, attempting to burn holes into the blonde's back when he turned.

"Thank you, Vito. You can leave now." Yao dismissed, slipping the dagger back up one of his sleeves.

"Actually, I have to stay and watch their progress. Michele's orders." He shrugged, crossing his arms and standing to the side as he leant against the wall.

"As long as you are quiet. You know how much I despise unnecessary noise." The Chinese man nodded before going to the front of the room, standing in front of the long weapons. "Romano, Feliciano, please come stand here?" Feliciano instantly hurried to stand in front of Yao and looked up at him, bubbling with enthusiasm. Romano slowly dragged himself to stand in front of him, arms crossed and eyes casted down. Yao quietly studied them both. Romano, although he seemed to hold a temper, stood out as the slightly calmer one out of the two brothers. Meanwhile, he assumed that Feliciano was probably fast, but clumsy due to his hyper activeness. Well, he would see in a moment. "Have either of you ever learnt any form of martial arts before?"

"Sì sì!" Feliciano exclaimed. "We both have! Our parents used to teach us and then Lars as well!" Romano wanted to hit his brother of the head for telling a stranger things this easily. Didn't he know that he shouldn't reveal everything to strangers?

"Do you know what type?" Yao asked, smiling slightly. Well, at least he wouldn't have to start from the basics!

"…"

Okay, so maybe he would.

The Chinese man sighed and rubbed his temples, thinking for a few minutes. So, they had fought, but they didn't know what style. Well, it was probably just easiest to start them off with something simple and see if they could catch up on it.

"That's fine," he mumbled, walking so that he was able to stand in front of them and faced them. Sliding his right leg back, he pushed his left knee forward and turned his right foot so that it was perpendicular to his left which was still facing forward. Showing the boys how to make a proper fist (with the thumb on the outside, not clenched inside) he pulled back his right fist, facing up close to his hip whilst his left arm was extended forward, just above his left knee. "Copy me." He instructed, carefully watching as both brother's attempted to mimic him.

Feliciano, surprisingly enough, got the stance pretty much perfect the first time. His structure was strong and once he had learnt the moves, Yao was sure that he would be able to swiftly block or attack from any direction. This was a good start!

Romano, however, he couldn't say the same about.

The older Italian didn't look like he had put any effort into the stance at all! His arms were lazily placed and he wasn't even bending his knee properly! He was going to have to work with this one for quite some time.

"Keep your stances strong." Yao instructed, watching as Romano didn't even move yet Feliciano's face twisted into one of concentration, tensing as he did. "This is a downward block with a front stance. It's proper name is 'Gedan Barai' and this style is Shotokun Karate, one of the simplest ones to start off with, or I think so anyway." He informed. Without warning, he delivered a sharp kick to both Romano and Feliciano's left side – the one they should have been protecting with their arms.

Feliciano back foot shifted slightly, but he managed to stay standing, yet he still whined from the sudden pain. Romano yelped as he was kick, instantly falling to the soft mats on the ground as he held his arm, rubbing it gently. What a bastard! He could at least have given him some warning! He turned to glare at Yao, only to be met with a firm gaze.

"I did tell you to keep your stance strong, Romano," he said, turning around and returning so that he was in the same stance as they were as he waited for Romano to stand up again. "Right, now this is called a 'kata'. It's a sequence which is what you need to grade. I'm not going to grade you, I just want to see how well your movement is. Now follow me, we'll go slowly first."

After about twenty minutes of teaching the two Italian brothers the simple sequence, he watched them perform it by themselves as he assessed them in his mind. No, he didn't expect them to be perfect of course, but he did want their movements to be swift, yet strong.

Again, Feliciano seemed to grasp it more than his brother. Of course, he would slip up by maybe forgetting or adding a punch or turning the wrong way, but then he would recover and the way he moved was extremely smooth for a beginner. Romano didn't seem to care as he just copied his brother, his punches holding no strength nor speed behind them. Occasionally, he even lost his balance and fell when he needed to make the quick 270 turn.

Yao sighed.

Perhaps that was enough for today. They just had enough time for trying a couple of weapons.

* * *

><p>Yao took a bo staff off the wall, handing it to Feliciano after demonstrating how to use it. The young teenager leapt with joy as he began to manoeuvre the staff to match his moves instantly, almost hitting the sensei who frowned at his eagerness. Tossing a staff to Vito, he instructed him to teach Feliciano how to properly use his weapon.<p>

"Romano, come over here with me." Yao instructed, walking over to the wall and lifting the sai swords off. Romano followed him obediently, slightly afraid that if he didn't, he would get another kick in the side. "I saw you looking at these earlier." Yao mused, skilfully spinning the pronged knives in his hands as Romano tried his best not to look impressed.

"Here, you try. Just be careful not to hurt yourself. Do it one at a time." Yao smiled softly at the younger. "Trust me, it take a while to do, so be patient." The Italian could have laughed at that statement. He was anything but patient and he knew that himself as well! Taking one of the swords, he tried to copy the sensei but couldn't so much as make it go round his hand once before it clattered to the floor.

"Fuck!" he swore, scowling at the weapon. Stupid sword! It was too damn slippery! It wasn't his fault that it dropped.

"No matter, try again." Yao encouraged, handing him the other sword. Romano snatched it from him.

"You better not mess up or I'll kill you," he murmured to the weapon as he tried to spin this one as well. It lasted slightly longer; perhaps only by half a second as it too fell to the floor, causing Romano to swear loudly. Picking them up, he began to attempt twirling them both at the same time, hoping that that would work. He bit his lip in concentration, carefully watching his fingers as they moved. The corners of his mouth twitched up as he began to spin them faster, finally getting the hang of it. Hey, maybe they weren't so bad after all!

_Clink!_

The teenager's expression quickly swapped from one of happiness to one of annoyance. Fucking swords! They were good for nothing after all! Picking it up, he clasped it tightly before he threw it blindly to the side.

"Woah!" Vito suddenly screamed, moving his head slightly to his right, just as the sword plunged into the wall next to his head. Romano blinked and glanced over to see the blonde's face full of fright and the sai sword impaled into the space next to him. He frowned. If only he had aimed a _little_ closer to the left…

"I… think that's enough for today." Vito decided, pulling the dagger which had been dangerously close to his head off the wall. "Besides, you two need to go have your actual lessons now."

"Aw, but I was having fun!" Feliciano pouted, sadly putting the staff down. "I like doing this!" Vito smirked slightly, remembering how nervous Feliciano had been that morning at breakfast.

"No, I agree. Let's go!" Romano huffed, roughly throwing his dagger onto the floor and storming out. The blonde man quickly apologised to the martial arts trainer before handing him the weapon and left. Feliciano smiled as he quickly hugged the Chinese man, thanking him before running out at an amazing speed to join his brother, leaving the ponytailed man flustered.

Yao watched as the three boys exited his dojo. He waited until he could no longer hear the loud nattering of Feliciano and the constant swearing of Romano until the whole corridor was empty. Entering his own private room, he took out a small mobile phone and slipped it into his trouser pocket.

Soon, he left the dojo and made his way to the exit of the base. Nodding to the security guard, he explained he was just going to take a quick walk and should be back within half an hour. Of course, no one would question a member who had stayed loyal for more than a decade! Staying true to his word, he began walking with a very relaxed posture at a slow pace.

However, as soon as he knew he was out of sight, he broke into a run, determined to get as far deep into the forest and away from the base as possible.

* * *

><p><em>"Hello?"<em>

"Ni hao, it's China." Yao whispered softly into the phone. Even though he was a fair distance away from the headquarters, one could never be too careful. His chocolate eyes constantly darted around him, checking that no one had followed him. But there was nothing except the peaceful sound of silence in the forest.

"Ah yes. There isn't a problem is there? As one of our senior members, I expected you to be more… careful. You didn't get caught did you?" the voice on the other side began to show a hint of worry as it continued speaking. Yao smiled slightly at his boss' concern.

"No, no. Not at all. But you do realise that the Vargas brothers are now here, yes?"

"Ah… so they are with _you!_ That is… brilliant! Teach them! Train them well, but don't for a second let any one suspect you are with World Alliance…" the voice suddenly turned serious, worried in case their plan would fail. Yao rolled his eyes.

"I have been undercover with Skull's blood for fifteen years. What makes you think that I'll slip up now?" he asked, slightly offended that his boss would think he'd mess up. The voice chuckled.

"You're right.. You've been with World Alliance longer than I have." the voice chuckled. Yao's left eye twitched slightly.

"Ah! You younger agents have no respect for your elders now!" he hissed, causing the other to laugh a little more.

"I apologise, Yao. But on more serious matters, look after them, train them well, but not too much. We don't want them resisting us should we meet them earlier than planned. Keep us updated as well. Good luck." and with that, the person on the other side cut the line.


End file.
